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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23658052">Rosemary Hall</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/storyspinner70/pseuds/storyspinner70'>storyspinner70</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Supernatural RPF</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angsty Schmoop, M/M, Supernatural Meant to Be Challenge</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-04-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 23:14:36</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,092</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23658052</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/storyspinner70/pseuds/storyspinner70</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Written for this prompt from the SPN Meant to Be Challenge: </p><p>Lulled into a false sense of security: Janet Gallen knew Bea McNair's scheme to open a bed and breakfast – more a "dignity house" for her ailing friends – miles from nowhere in the Ozarks was impossibly mad. But it was such a noble scheme... No wonder she soon forgot Bea's having mentioned "poor little Lucas," who wanted his mother to face up to her heart condition and retire to Little Rock. A son who "might be a little annoyed" but who would come around. Then Lucas McNair descended upon them like a wrathful God come off his mountain to hand out retribution--with Janet as his primary target…</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Jensen Ackles/Jared Padalecki</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>111</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>SPN Meant to Be Master Collection</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>I loved this prompt, but ended up going in a completely different direction than I thought I was going to. *shrugs* Whatcha gonna do?</p><p>
  <em>Getting old wasn’t the automatic death sentence their families thought it was, and Bea Ackles and her friends were getting really tired of throwing away pamphlets for old folk’s homes and walk in bathtubs.</em>
  <br/>
  <br/>
  <em>Sometimes, the best thing you can do is run away from home. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>Rosemary Hall</strong>
</p><p> </p><p>It’s not that it wasn’t a good idea. It was, actually, an amazing idea. Bea Ackles was getting up there in age - not that she looked a day over 50, mind you - and so were a lot of her friends. Their bones were a little more fragile, their steps a little slower, and maybe they took more pills than they had before, but one thing had become increasingly obvious to them as they all gracefully aged - their families were more a problem than their high cholesterol ever was.</p><p>Just because they hit a certain marker in their life’s long and luscious journey (yeah, Maddie’s daughter actually said that) suddenly their families started talking about them not driving anymore and looking into “assisted care facilities”. It’s no wonder there was a riot.</p><p>Okay, fine, riot might be a bit of an overstatement. Honestly though, what else do you call six elderly people running away from home in protest? Oh, wait, I know this…</p><p>You call it Rosemary Hall.</p><p>**</p><p>“I wish she was here to see this,” Maddie said, watching as the sign in front of their B&amp;B that bore their dead friend’s name was finished.</p><p>“She would have hated it,” Bob replied. “You know how contrary she was.”</p><p>“Still mad that she wouldn’t sleep with you, Bob?”</p><p>“Pfft, no one can resist me, so I have no idea what you’re talking about.”</p><p>“Sure, Bob.”</p><p>“Get a room you two,” Bea said pointing them toward the house. “Literally. I’m interviewing the manager today and I don’t want you scaring him off. Besides, I think Lily needed some help moving some things. Her arthritis is bad since the move.”</p><p>**</p><p>Jared, as it turned out was not only perfect for the job, but was gorgeous to boot. When Jared mentioned a bad break up with a boyfriend over coffee, Bea thought about matching him with her grandson for a split second, but got over it quickly. She wouldn’t do that to Jared.</p><p>It’s not that Jensen was a bad person, per se. It’s just that he didn’t really have room in his life for anything other than his job. He had a big heart - as crazy as he made Bea with his demands that she settle down safely in a nice facility with lots of knitting and popsicle stick crafts, he did it out of love for her. No, she one hundred percent understood why he was so insistent, she just didn’t appreciate it very much.</p><p>As dusk fell, she stood on the porch watching the fireflies spark to life. Jared would move in in a week, everyone else was already moved in, and they’d open their doors for customers in just under a month.</p><p>It was going to be amazing.</p><p>**</p><p>Rosemary Hall had eleven bedrooms and a large beautifully manicured lawn and lots of flora and fauna. It had six full time residents and four rooms to let at any one time. They offered full breakfast and a light lunch and were within fifteen minutes of nearly every eatery and attraction the town had to offer. They had every permit they could have possibly needed for anything, and Jared was always on the look out for even the smallest thing they may have forgotten.</p><p>They were ready for their first customers.</p><p>What they weren’t ready for was one of them showing up a day early.</p><p>**</p><p>Jensen Ackles loved his grandmother. Like, a lot. He did. <em>So much</em>. Really.</p><p>Also, he wanted to alternatively slap her in a straight jacket for the rest of her life and hypnotize her so she had no choice but to listen to him. Maybe shackle her to his person for a bit. That would teach her.</p><p>As he knocked sharply on the ornate wooden door, he straightened his spine. He had girded his loins for this trip, cause god knew he was gonna need it. His grandma was nothing if not stubborn. That was okay though, he knew just what to expect. They’d had this argument plenty of times before.</p><p>When the door opened on one of the most beautiful people Jensen had ever seen, though, it was not what he had expected. It wasn’t until he realized the man was standing there staring at him that it kicked in the guy had probably said something to him.</p><p>“Bea Ackles, please.” He said after he cleared his throat.</p><p>“Can I tell her who’s here to see her?”</p><p>“I’d rather not say.”</p><p>The man arched a brow. “Are you a bill collector?”</p><p>“Do bill collectors come to see her?” Jensen asked sharply.</p><p>“Not if you’re not one,” he replied. “Are you a salesman?”</p><p>“No,” Jensen answered.</p><p>“Are you a suitor?”</p><p>Jensen gritted his teeth. “Are you going to go get her or are you going to continue grilling me all day?”</p><p>“Are you going to tell me who you are?” The man countered with a sunny smile.</p><p>Jensen had started to growl. He could feel it working its way up his sternum and into this throat. This man may be gorgeous but he made him as crazy as his grandma did.</p><p>The man had both brows arched now, and a much sharper smile slowly worked its way over his face.</p><p>“You’ve seen Jensen’s picture, Jared. Stop harassing my grandson,” Bea said from somewhere deeper in the room.</p><p>Jensen narrowed his eyes, “Yeah, <em>Jared</em>, stop harassing her grandson.”</p><p>“Gladly, Bea,” Jared said and turned, leaving Jensen in the doorway.</p><p>“Did you just flounce?” Jensen asked mildly as he entered the room. “Cause it looked a lot like you just flounced.”</p><p>“Jensen,” his grandma admonished with a frown.</p><p>Jared had walked back to Jensen and leaned closer. “Why, did you like it?”</p><p>Jensen raised and dropped his brows quickly. “Kind of, yeah.”</p><p>“So what brings you to Austin?” Jared asked.</p><p>“Run away grandma,” Jensen said, hitching his thumb over his shoulder toward Bea.</p><p>“She’s been here for like, six months now. That’s hardly <em>running away</em>.”</p><p>“She told me she was on sabbatical at the beach. It wasn’t until I got a copy of the paperwork for the line of credit to get this place that I had any idea what was going on. I wrapped up some stuff, took a leave from work and voila, here I am!”</p><p>“Yes, you are,” Jared said, blatantly checking Jensen out.</p><p>“What do you mean you got a copy of the paperwork?” Bea broke in. She sounded very annoyed.</p><p>“I’m your CPA grandma. I get copies of everything like that.”</p><p>Bea scowled. “You’re fired.”</p><p>“I’m not fired, grandma.”</p><p>“Yes you are.”</p><p>“You can’t fire me, grandma.”</p><p>“Yet, I just did.”</p><p>“Did you? I must have missed that part.”</p><p>“I’ll tell everyone you embezzled from me.”</p><p>“Sure,” Jensen agreed. “You can do that.”</p><p>Bea scoffed, but came over to brush her hand over Jensen’s chest. “Why do you look tired? Dallas isn’t that far away. You shouldn’t look this tired.”</p><p>“Work stuff,” Jensen sighed. “I needed a vacation, so I figured I’d just come down here and lecture you about your health and well being for a few days.”</p><p>“Lucky us,”Bea said, slapping Jensen on the back of the head.</p><p>Jensen just smiled at her and hugged her. “I missed you.”</p><p>“I couldn’t tell,” Bea said dryly. “The call every single day to make sure I hadn’t drowned or died from the sting of a poisonous jellyfish never tipped me off.”</p><p>“Hey, those jellyfish are no joke,” Jensen said and they were off.</p><p>Jensen looked around as his grandmother fussed at him for smothering her - a conversation they had had about a hundred times before - but didn’t see Jared anywhere. He must have slipped away as Jensen and Bea bantered.</p><p>He was surprisingly disappointed.</p><p>**</p><p>“Looking for a little warm milk to help you sleep?”</p><p>Jensen jumped at Jared’s unexpected appearance. “Mmhmm.”</p><p>“Looks like you made a wrong turn at the fridge. That looks a lot like coffee, instead.”</p><p>“Grandma always has the best coffee.”</p><p>“It’s not exactly conducive to sleeping at,” Jared checked his watch, “3am.”</p><p>“Maybe I’m an early riser.”</p><p>“Who has only one set of clothes?”</p><p>“I pack light.”</p><p>“I moved your bags, I know that’s a lie.”</p><p>“Pfft. Don’t be so dramatic.”</p><p>“It’s my natural state,” Jared quipped and they fell silent. “Want to talk about it?”</p><p>“Yes, and also no.”</p><p>“Bea talks about you all the time,” Jared said conversationally.</p><p>“Does she? I’m kind of surprised you let me in the place in that case.”</p><p>Jared laughed. “It’s not <em>all</em> bad.”</p><p>“Just most of it,” Jensen said bitterly.</p><p>“Hey, no. She gets annoyed about how much you check up on her sometimes but she told me herself that she didn’t know what she’d do without you.”</p><p>Jensen gestured around the kitchen but kept his eyes trained on his coffee cup. “She’d be just fine without me.”</p><p>“Jensen? What are you talking about?” Jared sounded alarmed.</p><p>Jensen was silent for a few moments. “I’m just tired. And you’re a stranger who doesn’t need to be bothered by my stupid shit in the middle of the night.”</p><p>“Jensen, no,” Jared started, but Jensen had already rinsed his coffee cup and put it in the dishwasher.</p><p>“I’ll see you in the morning, Jared. Night.”</p><p>“Night, Jensen.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Bea, have you seen Jensen this morning?” Jared asked about eleven. He had worried about Jensen all night and wasn’t happy that he hadn’t seen him yet. He couldn’t shake the feeling that something was terribly wrong.</p><p>“He was up early. He muttered something about checking out the framework of the house in case the inspector missed something.”</p><p>“Is he a contractor in his spare time?” Jared asked then laughed.</p><p>“I’ll have you know I took two whole years of wood shop in high school,” Jensen said from somewhere behind Jared.</p><p>“Didn’t we all,” Jared said, turning. “Wow, you’re filthy.”</p><p>“That I am. I’ve got dirt all over me too,” Jensen waggled his brows in the most ridiculous way.</p><p>Jared just rolled his eyes.</p><p>“Can you not hit on my manager please,” Bea said. “Or at least learn some decent pick up lines before you continue. We have all the cheese we need in the kitchen.”</p><p>“How dare you, grandma, I’ll have you know I’m smooth like butter.”</p><p>“Is that why you’re still single?” Bea said then immediately grimaced. “Jensen, I’m sorry.”</p><p>Jensen just nodded and headed to his room to change.</p><p>“Is everything alright?” Jared asked.</p><p>“I just crammed my foot in my mouth, that’s all.”</p><p>“Is he that touchy about being single?”</p><p>“It’s not just that. He was engaged a year or so ago. She was a lovely girl. We thought.”</p><p>“You thought?”</p><p>“All we know is that suddenly they weren’t engaged anymore and she was spreading stories around about him cheating on her like she was some kind of town crier.” Bea shook her head in disgust. “That boy doesn’t have a cheating bone in his body. All we could ever get him to say was that <em>truth was often stranger than fiction,</em>” she paused. “Well, that and that we needed to mind our own damn business.”</p><p>“Why didn’t he ever tell his side?”</p><p>“Lord only knows.”</p><p>“He hasn’t dated anyone since?”</p><p>“Oh, a few. One nice boy I thought might stick, but he broke up with him right before I left. I just want him to be happy,” Bea said, watching up the stairs like she should still see Jensen.</p><p>“He’s not,” Jared said absently, deep in thought.</p><p>Bea studied Jared carefully. “No. No he’s not.”</p><p>**</p><p>“So, are we going to talk about it?”</p><p>“Talk about what? My carpentry skills?”</p><p>“What brought you here.”</p><p>Jensen stared out over the long stretch of lawn, watching droplets from the sprinklers shine in the dying light. “I was storming down here to demand my grandmother stop her nonsense and come home where she would be safe.”</p><p>“She is safe,” Jared said.</p><p>“Is she?”</p><p>“Jensen…”</p><p>“Have you ever stepped back from your own life and just looked at it?” Jensen said almost conversationally. “Ever realized that there isn’t one thing about you or the life you’re living that’s anything other than disappointing?”</p><p>Jared didn’t speak, just scooted closer to Jensen on the wide steps of the porch.</p><p>“First world problems extraordinaire”, Jensen said then snorted. “Poor me, my job that makes me rich isn’t what I want and my easy life is unfulfilled. Boo hoo.”</p><p>“You’re rich?” Jared took a chance and said.</p><p>“I am,” Jensen smiled a little. “Why does that sweeten the pot?”</p><p>“It was pretty darn sweet already, not gonna lie, but…”</p><p>Jensen laughed. “Grandma says she’s in over her head.”</p><p>“She never said anything to me about that,” Jared said, frowning.</p><p>“Because it’s not true,” Jensen replied dryly. “She just feels sorry for her mopey grandson.”</p><p>“What’s she offering?”</p><p>“Partnership and for me to do all the accounting and the heavy lifting when <em>that nice boy Jared</em> isn’t around.”</p><p>“My back would be happy for the help, especially on grocery day.”</p><p>“I never meant to get so down,” Jensen contemplated. “I was going to do something about it just as soon as I wasn’t so busy.”</p><p>“But you were always busy.”</p><p>“And then my grandma ran away from home.”</p><p>“I still can’t believe she did all this without you knowing,” Jared laughed.</p><p>“Took a couple day trips down here to see properties, found this one that needed like <em>no</em> work, hired contractors to do the little bit there was and then went “to the beach” for six months and I was never the wiser.”</p><p>“It’s a good thing you’re her CPA or you wouldn’t have known to come down here,” Jared said.</p><p>“Yeah,” Jensen turned to Jared, studying him in the swiftly falling night. “It would have been a real shame if I hadn’t made it down here.”</p><p>Jared grinned, “You’d have made it down here eventually,” he said. “No trip to the beach can last forever.”</p><p>“That’s true,” Jensen said. “Nothing lasts forever.”</p><p>“Some things do.”</p><p>“Yeah? Like what?”</p><p>Jared turned in toward Jensen. “Like love.”</p><p>“And my grandma thought<em> I</em> was cheesy.”</p><p>“You must have rubbed off on me,” Jared whispered.</p><p>“Not yet, but the night is still young.” Jensen leaned closer to Jared, running his fingers over the defined slope of Jared’s chin, snagging on his dimple for a moment before tracing Jared’s lower lip.</p><p>“Not to interrupt <em>The Gay and The Angsty</em>,” Jensen’s grandma said from somewhere behind them, “but I’d rather my very first guests ever not have to deal with porno on the front lawn after dinner.”</p><p>“You could charge extra for the sideshow,” Jensen quipped, dropping his forehead down on Jared’s collarbone in frustration.</p><p>“You need to be getting to bed, don’t you think?” His grandma said pointedly. “Your <em>own</em> bed. <em>Alone</em>.”</p><p>“I do?”</p><p>“You do. You need to leave early enough to get to Dallas bright and early tomorrow,” she said firmly.</p><p>Jensen sat up straight. “What?”</p><p>“You’ve got a job to quit and that god awful apartment to pack up.” She pointed at Jensen. “Don’t take too long on goodbyes. You’ll be back here in two weeks after you work your notice. You made it this long without him,” she pointed at Jared, ”you can manage fourteen more days.”</p><p>“I don’t remember agreeing to...”</p><p>Her only response was the slap of the screen door closing behind her.</p><p>“So I guess you’re moving,” Jared said. When the silence went on for too long, he continued, “of course, you are a big boy. I’m sure Bea would be fine if you decided not to move down here.”</p><p>Jensen stayed silent.</p><p>“I mean, she <em>is </em>here in this giant house hours away from family. Just her and her poor, frail friends. No one but them and me here to try and defend ourselves from like, robbers and handsy salesmen that just want some companionship after way too long on the road.” Jared peeked at Jensen who was watching him avidly.</p><p>“No, no. Please continue. I wanna see how far this is going to go.”</p><p>“What do you want to do?” Jared asked quietly.</p><p>“I want to move forward instead of sitting still.” Jensen said.</p><p>They sat in silence for another moment.</p><p>“I want to fight with my grandma about her over the top purchases,” Jensen mused. “I want to walk around as dusk falls and try to out run the sprinklers when they start. I want to kiss you in the kitchen with the sun bouncing off the copper pots my grandma had to have hanging from the ceiling even though she can barely reach them. I want to watch the stars at night and think about how they look dimmer than I remember because all I can think about is your eyes.”</p><p>Jared caught his breath.</p><p>“I want to fight with shitty customers and cheating vendors.” Jensen turned back toward Jared. “I want to find out if what we have is the forever kind of thing or if the best we’ll ever be is how we’ve been these two days.”</p><p>Jared swallowed, hard.</p><p>“I want to sublease my god awful apartment and leave my rat race job so far behind me I forget they ever existed.” Jensen reached out for Jared. “I want to find out if my heart pounds so much every time I see you because I’m close to having a heart attack or if it’s because I’m going to love you as hard as I think I am.”</p><p>Jared snorted, his eyes and laugh watery with threatened tears.</p><p>“I wanna move forward,” Jensen repeated, “and I want it to be with you.”</p><p>Jared did cry then. “Asshole, look what you made me do.”</p><p>“It’s both a gift and a curse,” Jensen said, kissing Jared until his tears faded away.</p><p>“You should get to bed,” Jared said after awhile. “You’ve got a long trip tomorrow.”</p><p>“Yeah, I gotta get things going and hurry back here,” Jensen replied. “Gotta protect you from all those robbers and handsy salesmen.”</p><p>“My hero,” Jared pretend swooned.</p><p>“Nah,” Jensen said. “Just a man that loves to see you smile.”</p>
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